Courses

Water Diplomacy students are taught by faculty experts in the fields of water science and engineering, conflict resolution, public policy, and water management. Students must complete the requirements of a doctoral program with additional emphasis on interdisciplinary water diplomacy related education and research opportunities.

Water Diplomacy I: Synthesis of Science, Policy &Politics of Boundary Crossing Water ProblemsThis course is a synthesis of science, policy and politics of water and builds on the concepts and methodologies covered in Water Diplomacy I and II. It was taught by Drs. Islam and Moomaw in Spring 2013. It focuses on water conflicts, negotiations and cooperation, and integrates scientific origins of water conflicts from emerging ideas from theory and practice of complexity and negotiation. It emphasizes both quantitative and qualitative approaches to analyzing water conflicts through negotiations using recent advances in collective actions in managing common pool resources with a mutual gains approach within an analytical framework of water diplomacy.

Water Diplomacy II: Water Policy & EconomicsThis course is required of all natural science and engineering students and was taught by Drs. Roach and Portney in Fall 2012. Topics include introduction to the legal and regulatory foundations of environmental and natural resource policy at the national and international levels with specific attention to water and issues of externalities, property rights, public goods, public choice, and trust. This course also covers identification of alternative options, economic assessment of those options, role of vested interests that might oppose particular rational strategies, and how to develop policies that take political realities into account.

Water Diplomacy III: Water Science and Systems This course is required of all social science students and was taught by Drs. Islam, Levine and Reed in Fall 2012. Water Diplomacy I is a four-module, team-taught course with a focus on water in the natural domain (water quantity, quality, ecosystems). Faculty with expertise in module content and commitment to interdisciplinary pedagogical approaches ensure that course content is rigorous but not necessarily filled with disciplinary jargon. It brings in real world examples and perspectives to offer the content in a contextually relevant format. It emphasizes concepts and methodologies as well as tools and implementation. Topics focus on (a) hydrologic cycle and hydrologic processes at various scales; (b) modeling of hydrologic and climatic processes; (c) wetland ecology, ecosystem values and services; and (d) water systems planning and decision making under uncertainty.

Water Diplomacy Colloquium The Water Diplomacy Colloquium is intended to help students define/refine their interdisciplinary water diplomacy research hypothesis/questions through focused presentation and feedback from advisors, faculty and water diplomacy peers.

The colloquium presentations are focused on the following three main questions: (a) What is the key hypothesis/research question? What is the water problem? What do we know about this water problem? What do we not know about this water problem? Why do we need to know about this water problem? Why does addressing this problem require an interdisciplinary approach? In what ways is this problem related to Water Diplomacy? (b) What kind of data and/or analysis will help answer the question(s) or hypothesis? How will the data and or analysis help you answer the question/hypothesis? and (c) What specific feedback are you seeking to refine/revise your question/hypothesis and proposed method?

The colloquium offers an opportunity for all participants to develop a common language across disciplines and further expand the employment of multidisciplinary methods to address complex water research questions.